


Just a piece in their games

by starfishunicorntea



Category: SKAM (TV)
Genre: Hunger Games AU, M/M, i mean this is a hunger games au so beware, i will add warnings as i update i guess, snake on fire, the snake games
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-17
Updated: 2017-10-26
Packaged: 2018-12-16 16:23:27
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,489
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11832489
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starfishunicorntea/pseuds/starfishunicorntea
Summary: The rules of the Hunger Games are simple. Kill or be killed. The last tribute standing wins.Skam Hunger Games Au





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hei! This is basically my first skam fic. I tried and tried but couldn’t get the idea of a hunger games au out of my head. So here you are. I'm sorry for all the pain in advance
> 
> I would like to thank all the amazing people that helped me with this. You know who you are and I tarlove you ;) <3
> 
> Hope you like it!

Isak jolts awake to a sound of a crash.

Eyes wide, he looks around the room and finds his mum asleep on her bed and sighs in relief. He turns his head to the source of the noise and finds Lea searching the kitchen cupboards for something to eat

 

“Go catch a mouse or something, Lea,” he grunts in annoyance and lays back down.

 

Lea walks up to Isak meowing. Isak is sure the cat hates him as much as he hates her; it’s a miracle they didn’t end up killing each other in their sleep.

 

The last thing Isak needed was another creature to care for.  But he keeps her for the sake of his mum. His mum loves the cat and it’s like Lea takes care of her sometimes, comforting her in a way Isak can’t. So Isak puts up with Lea, he would put up with anything if it means his mother feels a little better.

Lea keeps on meowing, reminding Isak they have nothing to eat. He needs to go hunting. So he gets up and puts on his clothes. Isak wears his hunting boots and grabs his bag, slips outside.

Isak doesn’t have to walk much to reach the scruffy field called the Meadow. A high chain-link fence topped with barbed-wire loops separates the Meadow from the forest. It’s supposed to be electrified all day but since District 12 only has electricity a few hours of the day, it’s usually safe to touch. Though, Isak still checks to see if the fence is alive every time. He bends down to listen for the hum but it’s silent, so he slides underneath a loose spot in the fence.

As soon as he is in the woods, he goes to the tree he uses to hide his weapons. Grabbing his bow, he puts his sheath of arrows over his shoulder. As a habit he runs his hand through his bow. It was his dad who crafted it along with some other weapons before he died and he keeps it well hidden out here in the woods. As much as it’s a memory of his dad, it is the reason he is alive and not starved to death. He was 11 when his dad died, yet 5 years later he still lies awake at night, his nightmares not letting him rest.  

Isak walks into the forest to their meeting place with Jonas, the only person he can be himself with. Isak spots Jonas sitting on the ground and a smile crosses his face. Jonas says Isak never smiles out of the woods. Well, why would he?

 

“Hey bro,” Isak greets him as Jonas turns to face him.

 

“Look what I caught?” Jonas says holding up a piece of bread. Isak snatches it from him, and smells the bread. It was good quality bread, still warm.

 

“What did it cost you?” Isak asks.

 

“Eva’s gift. For reaping day. Wished me luck too,” Jonas answers

 

Isak rolls his eyes. He would never understand their relationship. How could they afford to love each other? In District 12 where children starved, adults got blown off in mines or tortured for rebelling.  “She must really love you.”

It’s Jonas who rolls his eyes this time. “Well, we all feel a little closer today, don’t we?” he says with a bitter voice. Isak knows Jonas hates everything to do with the Capitol.

Suddenly his voice falls into a Capitol accent. “I almost forgot! Happy Hunger Games!”

Jonas picks up a berry and throws it at Isak, mimicking Chris Berg’s high pitched voice. “And may the odds be ever in your favour!” Isak catches the berry with his mouth and they both start laughing.

 

“Where is Eva by the way?” Isak asks. Eva is the daughter of the baker. Sometimes, she would come to the woods with Jonas and Isak, and they would teach her how to hunt. She got the hang of it quickly and was now quite good with the knife. Isak liked Eva. She didn’t have to hunt like Jonas and Isak did for her family to stay alive but she would help them sometimes.

 

“She is down by the bakery, her sisters are a bit nervous about today,” Jonas answers, pulling out a knife and cutting the bread.

Isak watches Jonas as he does so. He has curly brown hair, bushy eyebrows and gleaming brown eyes. He can see why Eva likes him so much. He’s good-looking: you can tell by the way the girls whisper about him when he walks by in school that they want him. It makes Isak just a little bit jealous, only because he is a good hunting partner. Not in any other way, Isak tries to convince himself.

Jonas hands him a piece of bread. “We could do it, you know. Take off, live in the woods. Get away from all this.” He gestures toward District 12.

“What about your siblings and Eva?” Isak asks .

“We’ll take them with us,” Jonas answers.

“My mum would never come,” Isak sighs and Jonas looks over at him, putting a hand on his shoulder.

 

“Forget it,” Jonas says.

 

The conversation feels so useless like most conversations with Jonas. He sits there complaining about the Capitol and how it’s all wrong, but in the end it doesn’t change anything. They’re still in District 12 trying not to starve when the Capitol... is the Capitol.

 

They hunt after that. Isak shooting animals with his bow, Jonas setting up traps and picking herbs. They drop off at the Hob to do some trading, then divide the remaining food between them.

“See you in the square,” Isak says and Jonas waves him in return. Isak can see that he is tense about the reaping. They part ways and Isak heads home to find his mum awake. He prepares her something to eat before going to wash himself. He picks his best clothes and puts them on.

“You look nice” his mother says, and he's still trying to not to jump at the sound of her voice. The voice that wouldn’t say as nice stuff as now when she wasn’t feeling so well. So he clears his throat and walks over to hug his mother.

At one o’clock, they head for the square. Isak’s mum standing at the side with the other grown ups as Isak walks over to the line to sign in like the other kids aged 12 to 18.

After signing his name, Isak finds himself next Jonas as they’re the same age and their names are next to each other in the alphabetic order of surnames. They exchange silent nods and stand staring at the stage.

 

On the stage stands Chris Berg, fresh from the Capitol with a pink neon wig and an orange sparkly dress.  

 

“Welcome, welcome. Happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favour,” she announces with that accent of hers.

 

“Before we begin, we have a very special film, brought to you all the way from Capitol.” As the film begins Isak knows Jonas well enough to know that he is rolling his eyes without looking at him. It’s the same film every year. The history of Panem, the result of the uprising and the rules of the Hunger Games. In punishment for the uprising, each of the twelve districts must provide one girl and one boy, called tributes, to participate. The twenty-four tributes will be imprisoned in a vast outdoor arena that could hold anything from a burning desert to a frozen wasteland. Over a period of several weeks, the  competitors must fight to the death. The last tribute standing wins.

The film ends and silence takes its place just before Chris exclaims, “Ladies first,” walking up to the glass ball filled with girls’ names. Reaching in, she picks a piece of paper and lifts up. A silence falls as she slowly unfolds the paper.

Chris Berg walks up to the microphone. “Eva Kviig Mohn.”

_Oh no._  Isak feels Jonas tense all over him, his eyes and mouth wide open, not breathing. Eva is taken aback, but when she feels everyone’s eyes on her she stands up straight, putting on a collected face.  “Any volunteers?” Chris asks. No one steps forward. Jonas lets out a heavy breath, shaking as he does so. Isak grabs his arm trying to offer any type of support. But he knows there is nothing he can do to fix this, nothing he can do to stop Jonas’s heart from shattering and his world coming undone. He knows this feeling too well, and once again he is helpless. So he does the only thing he can and tightens his grip on Jonas’s arm, letting him know that he is here, right here, just as Jonas did to him years ago.

“And now for the boys,” Chris walks up to the other glass ball. She digs her hand in the ball, twirls her hand around before picking a slip of paper.

Jonas is still shaking beside him and Isak squeezes his arm again whispering “It’s going to be okay, Jonas.” Chris walks up to the microphone, unfolding the paper. She clears her throat and the next 3 words are out of her mouth are:

“Jonas Noah Vasquez.”

 

And Isak can’t breathe, the odds are officially not in his favour today. People begin turning around to face him.  Jonas gets his arm out of Isak’s grasp and starts walking up to the stage. There is not a single drop of air in Isak’s lungs, unable to inhale, unable to exhale. The same words are echoing in his head and before he knows what he is doing he jumps forward.

“I volunteer,” he gasps, his voice not sounding like his. “I volunteer as tribute!”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Come on, everybody! Let’s give a big round of applause to our newest tribute!” trills Chris Berg. “Eva Kviig Mohn and Isak Valtersen”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for taking so long to update this. Life got in the way and I was being lazy blah blah...
> 
> I want to thank all the people that helped me with this fic,: A huge thank you to Rose for helping me with all the ideas and brain storming even the smallest detail, Marta for betaing this chapter and giving me idea, Bri for betaing my last chapter and encouraging me to write this, and to all the people in the skamily discord chat who encouraged me to keep on writing and believed in me. Honestly I couldn't have even started this fic without you. Thank you so much. Ily all <3 
> 
>    
> Here  
> is the tumblr post of this fic with a rubbish edit i made. 
> 
> Enjoy!

Jonas turns around protesting “Isak, no!” and grabs him by the arm not letting him walk up to the stage“No, Isak! No! You can’t go!”

There’s some confusion on the stage. District 12 hasn’t had a volunteer in decades and the protocol has become rusty. The rule is that once a tribute’s name has been pulled from the ball, another eligible boy, if a boy’s name has been read, or girl, if a girl’s name has been read, can step forward to take his or her place. In some districts, in which winning the reaping is such a great honor, people are eager to risk their lives, the volunteering is complicated. But in District 12, where the word tribute is pretty much synonymous with the word corpse, volunteers are all but extinct.

Isak keeps on pulling “Jonas, let me go!” he says harshly to keep his voice from cracking. He can’t risk crying now, when they televise the replay of the reaping everyone will make note of his tears and he will be view as an easy target. He can’t look weak and give anyone the satisfaction.

“I volunteer as tribute!” Isak repeats firmer

“Well, I believe we have a volunteer,” Chris Berg announces. Isak takes advantage of Jonas looking up at stage to escape his hold and run to the stage. When he climbs the stairs up to the stage and stands next to Eva, Chris Berg asks him “What’s your name?”

Isak swallows hard “Isak Valtersen”

“Don’t want him to steal all the glory, do we? Come on, everybody! Let’s give a big round of applause to our newest tributes!” trills Chris Berg. “Eva Kviig Mohn and Isak Valtersen”

There are a few cheers but it dies down quickly and then they’re met with silence. Chris clears her throat “Well come on now, shake hands” she says pushing Eva towards Isak.

Eva looks Isak right in the eye and gives his hand a reassuring squeeze which Isak returns. They turn back to face the crowd as the anthem of the Panem starts playing.

As soon as the anthem ends, a group of Peacekeepers march Isak and Eva through the front door of the Justice Building. Isak is guided to a room and left alone. He sits on a chair and waits for someone to arrive.

  
Isak’s mother comes in first and Isak can see just how worried she looks and he can feel the guilt instantly settling in his stomach. She wraps her arms around his neck and puts her head on his shoulder.

  
Isak can feel her shaking “I’m so sorry,” he says as he tries to comfort her by rubbing circles on her back. “Jonas is going to look after you.”

  
Marianne pulls away look at Isak “But you have to take care, too. You’re so fast and brave. Maybe you can win. You have to win Isak!” her voice is desperate and Isak hates it.

Isak can’t win. His mother must know that in her heart. The competition will be far beyond his abilities. There will be boys who are two to three times his size. Girls who know twenty different ways to kill you with a knife. Kids from wealthier districts, where winning is a huge honor, who’ve been trained their whole lives for this.

Isak just hugs her tighter “Whatever you see on the screen. You have to promise me you’ll fight through it. Okay? I’ll be fine. Don’t worry about me.”

Marianne reaches for something inside her bag and puts it inside Isak’s pocket before he can see what it is. “It was your father’s,” she says “For good luck.”

The mention of his father makes Isak’s throat tighten and it was getting harder to control his tears so he buries his face in his mother’s hair. He can feel tears falling to his shirt as his mother cries and they sit there hugging until a Peacekeeper comes to tell them their time is up.

They break from the hug and Isak’s mother turns to face him when she is at the door “I love you, Isak.”

  
Isak takes a deep breath, trying to calm down. He can’t cry, not right now.

Just then Jonas comes through the door and Isak goes straight for a hug. “What you did out there-“ Jonas begins

  
“Jonas, what’s done is done!” Isak interrupts him

  
“Why?” Jonas asks, “Why did you do it, Isak?”

  
Isak ignores his question and just hugs him tighter. “Look after my mum, Jonas” Isak nearly pleads.

  
Jonas hugs him back, his arms keeping him in place. “I don’t want to lose both of you,” Jonas says his voice cracking.

  
Isak pulls back to look at Jonas, his eyes are red and Isak can see new tears forming but Jonas blinks rapidly not letting them fall. It’s the first time Isak sees Jonas like this. He always thought Jonas was the most chill person in the world, that he would be composed no matter what he happened.

  
“I’m so sorry,” Isak says for the second time today. “I’ll do everything I can to make sure Eva comes home, I promise.”

  
Jonas let’s out a shaky exhale “Isak,” is all he says as they stand there hugging each other tightly for a few minutes before Jonas clears his throat and pulls away.

  
“Listen,” Jonas says, his voice is steady this time as he begins to speak “When you’re in the arena, you need to get hold of a bow. That’s your best chance.”

  
“They may not have a bow,” Isak starts to protest.

  
“Then you make one. Okay? You’re the best archer I know!”

  
Isak shakes his head “There will be people trained their whole life for this, Jonas!”

  
Jonas refuses to reason with Isak “You’ve had practice too, real practice,”

  
“With animals,” Isak says as the door opens, the Peacekeeper tells them their time is up and takes Jonas away.

  
“I believe in you, Isak!” Jonas shouts turning towards Isak as the Peacekeepers yanks him outside, slamming the door shut.

Isak sits down trying to control his breathing, thankfully no one else visits him so he is calmer by the time they need to walk to the train.  
Isak has been right not to cry. The station is swarming with cameras that are trained directly on his face. But Isak had a lot of practice at wiping his face clean of emotions. Eva looks pretty composed too.

Chris Berg escorts them to the train. The tribute train is fancier than the room in the Justice Building. They are each given their own chambers that have a bedroom, a dressing area, and a private bathroom with hot and cold running water. Which is a surprise to both Isak and Eva since most people don’t have hot water in District 12 unless they boil it.

After a quick tour of their chambers, Chris Berg tells them to wear anything they want from the drawers filled with clothes and to be ready for supper in an hour. So Isak takes a shower, something he’s never done before, then wears a dark green shirt and a pair of jeans.

Isak gets out of his chamber and starts walking around the train to find the dining room. Just as he decided he is lost, Chris finds him and leads him through narrow corridors into an exquisite dining room. There is a table that is filled with dishes. Eva is sitting at the table next Sana Bakkoush.

District 12 only had two victors in the past seventy four years. Only one of them is alive: Sana Bakkoush a 16 year old girl who is currently staring at Isak as he walks towards the table, dressed in all black. Isak remembers the year she won. The 72th Hunger Games. That year no one was more surprised of district 12 victory than District 12 itself. But with Sana Bakkoush in mind it felt possible. Sana was 14,mysterious and quiet. She won by outsmarting the games.

Sana and Isak are the same age, but Isak doesn't see her like that. They used to share some classes although they haven’t talked much before, Isak can see that she has changed a lot. Her stares are darker and there is no sign of the soft girl she was. Isak can see why though, after everything that happened during the games. Isak can still remember her screams echoing in the mountains after her partner died, it was quickly cut off by the capitol but people still saw. Isak would worry about what would happen to him after the games if he didn’t know he wasn't coming back. If anyone was going to win from district 12 it had to be Eva. Isak promised that much to Jonas at least. He had to do something for Jonas once, after all these years.

Sana speaks just then “Are you going to stand there or what?” Isak snaps out of his haze and takes a seat next to Eva.

  
“We were just discussing some strategies” Eva explains, Isak raises his eyebrows but keeps quiet as he fills his plate with food. There is more food than he has seen his whole life so he focuses all his attention on the food deciding he needs it to be stronger in the games anyway.

When the meal is over they go to another compartment to watch the recap of the games across Panem. Isak takes mental notes of the people that are a threat to him.

  
First person up is a Vilde Hellerud from District 1. A small girl with silver blonde hair and a pretty smile on her face. She almost looks dumb, but Isak knows what she is doing. She shouldn’t be underestimated. Then a smirking guy named Chris is selected and he looks more than happy to be going to the arena.

In District 2, a short dark haired girl named Emma is selected who looks younger than Isak. Then some smug looking guy, whose name starts with a W or a D or something volunteers. Isak decides he hates him already.  
District 3 tributes are selected and they don’t look worth memorising so Isak doesn’t pay much attention, just keeps thinking about the tributes in the Career District which are District 1,2 and 4. In those districts, most children are trained their whole lives for the games and the winners are usually from there.

Isak starts paying attention again when a dirty blonde haired girl named Sonja gets selected in District 4. She is pretty but could also be deadly. Isak makes a note to be careful of her. Then it’s time to select a boy from District 4. A paper is picked and then a name is called out:

“Even Bech Næsheim”

Oh, no, Isak thinks. Not him.

No, the odds are definitely not in Isak’s favour today. Isak watches as Even makes his way to the stage, dirty blond hair styled up, tall, taller than Isak last saw him, long limbs carry him to the stage confidently. If he is shocked, he doesn’t show it. Though when the camera zooms in his face Isak can see some emotions reflecting on his blue eyes.

Why him? Isak thinks then he decides the answer does not matter. They haven't seen each other in years. Even probably doesn't even remember him. But Isak does and he doesn't think he'll ever forget. But that doesn't matter now. What matters is getting Eva home.

Oh, well, Isak thinks. There will be twenty-four of them. Odds are someone else will kill him before Isak does.  
Of course, the odds have not been very dependable of late.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope I can post the next chapter sooner but I don't know when I'll post it honestly since school is starting and all. Wish me luck so I can stop being lazy and find time to write it.
> 
> Hope you liked it. Tell me your thoughts in the comments <3


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! 
> 
> First of all I want to thank all the amazing people that helped me with this fic: A huge thank you to Rose , who helped me with from the plot of this fic to the smallest details. Thank you Sarah for betaing this chapter. And basically a big massive thank you to all the people in the skamfiction server who always kept on encouraging me and helping when I was stuck. I love you all <3 
> 
> By the way I'm so sorry for taking ages to update this, I hope this slightly longer chapter makes up for it. It's time to put one of those tags up there to good use ;)
> 
> Enjoy!

The rest of the tributes go by in a blur. Isak can’t focus on anything until it’s time for  District 12, and Eva’s name gets picked. Isak is shocked by just how calm Eva looks as she walks towards the stage, all confident with no sign of emotions that could be considered as weakness. 

Then it’s Jonas’s name that comes out off the glass and Isak can’t breath once again. He couldn’t see Jonas face back at the reaping since he was standing right next to him, and was trying to comfort him about Eva being selected. Now, seeing him makes something ache inside of Isak’s chest. 

He still can’t believe it. Eva and Jonas being picked at the same time—out of all those names in there. 

He steps forward then, volunteering for Jonas. You can see the desperation in his own voice when he calls out for a second time, with the fear that they won’t let him volunteer and take Jonas away. They do let him, though, and he runs up to the stage after escaping Jonas’s hold. There’s silence, then Eva and Isak shake hands. They cut to the anthem, and then the program ends. 

Isak shakes his head to get rid of the emotions he feels after that clip, and he turns to look at Eva. She is hugging her knees to her chest, eyes glued to the floor. 

Just as Isak’s about to say something to her, Chris Berg’s voice breaks them out of their state. “Alright, everyone! Time for bed!” 

 

..........

 

Isak can’t sleep. Jonas’s face keeps on flashing behind his closed eyelids. His own voice when he volunteered echoes in his head. The feel of Eva’s hand as he stands in front of her shaking her hand—Eva who Isak needs to compete against. Eva who Isak needs to save as he promised to Jonas. 

 

Jonas. Isak wishes Jonas were here. He would rant about the Capitol and about how everything they do is wrong or whatever. Will he be able to look after his mother? Of course he will. Isak can trust Jonas with his life as well as his mother’s. Oh, and his mother—Isak worries about what she might be doing right now. Was she able to sleep? Or did she lose it the moment she left the visitor room? Isak’s heart clenches at the thought. He prays to whatever his mother believes in that she would be fine. He wants to believe she will. 

 

Before another name he’s been trying to avoid thinking about comes to his mind, he remembers his mother putting something in his pocket. Tired of not being able to sleep, he rolls out of bed and searches the pockets of his discarded clothes. He finds it. A little gold symbol that is attached to a piece of string. Isak’s breath hitches, and he is no longer in a train but feeling lost and cold in a forest. There's a kind voice telling him it's going to be okay. Isak shakes his head to get the images out of his head. The pin belongs to his father—he knows that much, as his mother told him. The memories of his father do nothing to calm his racing thoughts, so he shoves the item in his pocket before getting up to inspect it properly and deciding to take a walk around the train.

 

After 10 minutes of walking around, he hears noises coming from a compartment with lights on, so he takes a look inside to see Sana with her back turned to the door—kicking, hitting and elbowing a punching bag. Isak considers if he should talk to her. She kind of intimidates him, and he  really doesn’t want to get on her bad side at this time of night, especially right when she is beating the life out of a punching bag. It’s like Sana senses his presence, because she circles around the bag to face Isak while continuing what she is doing. Isak realizes it’s too late to back away when Sana makes eye contact with him, so he decides to take a step inside.

 

“Can’t sleep?” Isak asks.

 

Sana rolls her eyes. “What do you think?” 

 

_ Well,  _ Isak thinks,  _ at least they have one thing in common. _ So he walks inside and sits on an arm chair that is out of Sana’s punching range. Sana glares at him with her brown eyes.

 

“What do you want, Isak?”

Isak considers this for a moment. What does he want? Some good night’s sleep, obviously, but Sana can’t give him that. But he can thinking of something that can at least help calm his thoughts a little.

 

“I need you to save Eva.” 

 

Sana raises an eyebrow.

Isak carries on. “I need you to promise me that no matter what happens, you’ll help Eva in the arena. If one of us goes home, it has to be Eva!” 

 

Sana laughs at that, and Isak realizes there’s a madwoman underneath all the coldness. “So, you want to play the hero?” 

“I… Eva is my friend, and I promised Jonas I’ll take care of her,” Isak stumbles.

Sana cracks up again, laughing harder this time. 

“You do realize this the Hunger Games, right? You’ll be fighting for your life. There can only be one winner, Isak. One. And everyone else—dead,” Sana says as her voice grows more serious.

Isak is slightly afraid of Sana right now, and unsure of what to say.

“Well then, give us advice! Isn’t that what your job is?” Isak exclaims.

 

Sana grins bitterly “Here’s some advice: You need sponsors in the arena. When you have no food or water or you’re freezing to death, they might be your only chance. To get sponsors, you need to be nice to people, win them over.” And with that she walks out of the room, leaving Isak staring after her. 

  
  


..........

 

Isak wakes up to the sound of Chris Berg’s voice coming through his door. 

“Rise and shine! It’s a big, big day!” 

 

Isak groans. He really needs to do something about sleep if he doesn’t want to die before the games even start. He rolls out of bed tiredly and joins Eva, Sana and Chris at the breakfast table. He sees Sana eye him from the corner of her eye, but as soon as he sees the food, he doesn’t care anymore. There’s more food than he has probably seen altogether in his life. His stomach grumbles at the sight.  

Eva greets him with a smile. “Isak! Come sit down,”

The moment Isak sits in his chair he is served with an enormous platter of food. Eggs, ham, piles of fried potatoes. A basket of rolls that is enough to keep his and Jonas’s family going for a week. 

Just then, Eva extends him a cup of creamy brown liquid.

“They call it hot chocolate,” Eva says. “Taste it.” 

Isak takes a sip from the sweet, hot, liquid. A smile crosses his face at the taste of it, and he sees Eva reflecting his smile.

“It's so good, right?” Eva exclaims, and Isak almost feels like he is at home with the sight of her genuine smile. 

He chases his hot chocolate with the food he is presented with, stuffing down every mouthful he can hold. Isak knows he probably shouldn't eat too fast and risk upsetting his stomach that is not used to such a feast.

When Isak has finished half of his plate, he sees Sana sipping something that looks different than hot chocolate with her eyes closed, as if she is breathing life back into her body from the cup. 

“What is that?” Isak asks.

Sana gives him yet another look, but Chris speaks for her.

“Coffee, dark roast. Would you like some?” 

Isak nods. He has heard of coffee before, but in District 12 where his biggest priority is to not starve, he never had the chance to taste it. 

A strong but heavenly smell hits Isak’s nose as an Avox hands him a cup silently. He takes a small sip from it and is hit with a wave of energy, as if he wasn't awake all night. 

“Wow,” he murmurs to himself quietly, but Sana catches his eye and smirks at him knowingly. 

 

After Isak finishes his plate and feels like his stomach is about to burst open, he looks over to see Eva still dipping some buns into her hot chocolate and Sana staring blankly at her coffee. It's time to discuss some strategies.

 

He clears his throat.

 

“So, help us,” Isak says. “When we get to the arena, what’s the best strategy at the Cornucopia for someone —”

 

Sana holds up a hand cutting him off. “One thing at a time. In a few minutes, we’ll be pulling into the station. You’ll be put in the hands of your stylists. You’re not going to like what they do to you. But no matter what it is, don’t resist,” says Sana.

  
“But —” Eva begins.

  
“No buts. Don’t resist,” says Sana and walks out of the compartment.

Isak and Eva stay sitting at the table looking at each other in defeat. The car goes dark, then. There are still a few lights inside, but outside it's as if night has fallen. Isak realizes they must be in a tunnel that runs up through the mountains into the Capitol. The mountains form a natural barrier between the Capitol and the districts, which was a main factor in the districts losing a war 74 years ago that led them to be tributes today. 

 

Isak and Eva stay in silence as the train carries on through the tunnels until finally the train begins to slow down and the sun lights up their compartment again. And there it is—the Capitol—the running city of Panem. Magnificent buildings that tower into the air, shiny cars that drive through the wide paved streets, oddly dressed people with stranger hair and painted faces who have never missed a missed a meal in their lives. All the colours too artificial, too deep, too bright, nothing like the calming colours of the district 12 woods. 

 

People notice the tribute train and begin to point at Isak and Eva eagerly. They step away from the window and get ready to meet their stylists.

  
  


******************

 

Isak grits his teeth as the three people around him scrub his skin with a gritty loam that has not only removed dirt but also 3 layers of skin, pluck his eyebrows, and comb through his hair. 

 

“You’re nearly done!” one of them pipes in her silly Capitol accent. 

“You’re lucky you're not too hairy, I don't know what we would have done if you hadn't volunteered for your friend. Those brows would take ages to style.”

Isak can't help but roll his eyes. Why do these people speak in such a high pitch? He’s been in the remake center for almost 3 hours and still hasn’t seen his stylist. Apparently he has no intention of seeing Isak until the team deals with some obvious problems about his physical appearance.

 

At least Isak has kept his bargain with Sana and didn't say a word during the entire thing.

 

After the finishing touches, they remove Isak from the table and remove the robe he has been wearing on and off since arriving in the remake center. He stands there completely naked. The three steps back to admire their work

“Excellent! You almost look like a human being now!” One of them says.

Isak rolls his eyes again, but keeps his voice sweet for the sake of Sana.

“Thank you,” he says almost sarcastically. “We don't have many reasons to look nice in District 12.”

This wins them over and they give him sympathetic looks, clasping their hands dramatically.

“Of course you don't! Poor darling!” 

“But don't worry, by the time Eskild is done with you, you will be absolutely fabulous!”

“Let's call Eskild!” One of them exclaims in excitement. 

They leave the room, then the door opens to reveal a young man who must be Eskild. He has neon pink streaks in his ginger hair and a shiny piercing. His eyelids are covered in glitter and he is dressed in the bright colours of the rainbow.

“Hello, Isak. I’m Eskild, your stylist. Some people also call me Guru,” Eskild introduces himself.

“Hello,” Isak replies.

“Just give me a moment, all right?” he asks as he walks around Isak, not touching, but inspecting with his eyes. “You have such lovely hair!” 

“You’re new aren't you? I don't think I’ve seen you in the interviews before.” Isak asks cautiously.

“I’ve been a stylist for years! Where do you think this elegance comes from?” Eskild gestures to his clothes dramatically. “But yeah, you're right, this is my first year as a stylist in the games.”

“Why don't you put on your robe so we can have a little chat, eh?” Eskild asks after some more inspection.

Isak puts on his robe and sits on the red couch next to Eskild.

“So, Isak, about your costume in the opening ceremony. My partner Noora, is the stylist for your friend, Eva, and our thought is to dress you in costumes that best resemble District 12.”

For the opening ceremony, the tributes are required to wear something that suggests the district's principal industry. District 2, masonry. District 4, fishing. District 11, agriculture. District 12, mining. It's very likely that Isak and Eva are going to dress in coal mining outfits, just like any other year.

“We want to do something different this year,” Eskild continues. “Instead of focusing on coal mining, we want to focus on the coal.”

_ Oh, no,  _ Isak thinks, _ we’re going to be covered in coal. _

“And what do we do with coal? We burn it!” Eskild says, and Isak can see just how excited he is about this. “You’re not scared of fire, are you, Isak?” Eskild asks and smirks when he sees the expression on Isak’s face.

 

*********

 

A few hours later, Isak is standing dressed in what will probably be the deadliest costume in the ceremony. He is dressed in a sleeveless suit that covers him from his ankles to shoulders. His shoulders and arms are covered in red, orange and yellow glitter shaped as flames. There is a crown on his head with the same colour, and when he moves the light catches on the bright metal and sparkles like a flame.  The makeup really brings out his eyes—bits of highlight here and there and some silver glitter. There's more glitter on other parts of him—so much glitter—but it doesn't look that silly. In fact, it kind of makes the fire look more realistic. He looks deadly in a sparkly way. 

 

The last piece of the costume is a fluttering shiny cape with streams of orange, yellow and red, which Eskild plans to light on fire before the chariot begins its tour.

“It's not real flame, obviously. Just some sort of illusion with the light so the fire looks alive. Completely safe,” Eskild say,s but Isak’s still not convinced that he won't be perfectly barbecued by the end of the ceremony.

Eskild gives him one last look in the mirror after fixing his cape. 

“Isak Valtersen, the boy on fire!” Eskild exclaims in a dramatic way.

Isak rolls his eyes. It’s so pretentious. But also he can't help but admire their work—he looks so much different than the tributes he’s seen on the previous games before—like he could really stand out. 

 

When Isak is ready, he goes to the bottom level of the remake center, which is basically a huge stable, and finds Eva standing by their assigned horses. Her smoky eyes and carefully styled auburn hair complete her outfit perfectly. She looks stunning. She should know about fire, she is the baker’s daughter after all.

 

“Wow!” Isak says, “You look nice.”

 

Eva bumps his shoulder playfully “You don't look so bad yourself.” 

 

“Isak Valtersen and Eva Kviig Mohn, the District 12 tributes on fire,” Isak says mimicking Eskild's tone.

 

Eva rolls her eyes and laughs at him. Just then, Isak catches some of the tributes giving them strange looks. Isak averts his gaze back to Eva.

“What are they looking at?” Isak asks in a quiet voice.

“Huh?” Eva looks around and sees the other tributes all around them. “Oh, that. I don't know, really. This girl from 1 approached me before you came.”

Isak raises an eyebrow, confused. Just as he is about to ask Eva what the girl wanted, there's an announcement through the speakers telling them get on their carriages, and pairs of tributes start moving.

They help each other on the carriage, and Eva points to Isak’s side. 

“There's a button there. Noora said to press it before we start moving.” 

The opening music begins and Isak finds the button just as the horses start to move. The massive door open to reveal the street filled with people on the sides. 

District 1, dressed in silver glistening tunics and jewels, is the first to go, then District 2 and so on follow them behind. Just as District 11 is about to go, Eskild and Noora come up with a torch in their hand and light Isak and Eva’s capes on fire. Surprisingly, it’s not real, there’s not even heat. Isak and Eva let out a sigh of relief. 

“Remember to smile and keep your heads up! They’re going to love you!” Noora shouts behind them as the chariot takes off. 

It’s loud. Really loud. The music combines with the cheers and shouts of the crowd, which seems to increase as the District Twelve chariot comes into view. Heads begin turning their way, shifting the focus from the other tributes to Isak and Eva. Isak freezes at first, unsure of what to do, but then catches sight of them in the large screens around the street. 

They’re literally on fire—their flames seem to be illuminating the dark sky. Everyone’s attention is turned on them, the other tributes long forgotten. There’s Sana’s voice in the back of Isak’s head telling him to get sponsors and make them like him. He glances over at Eva to see her already ahead of him, waving at the cheering crowd with her head held up high. He tries to mimic her no matter how stupid it feels. The crowd seems to go wild, shouting their names, throwing kisses and flowers.

 

The twelve chariots tour around the City Circle and come to halt in front the President’s balcony. The president reads out the same speech as every year, then all the tributes go inside the Training Center. Eskild and Noora are waiting for them inside and help them take their flaming capes off. 

 

“You. Looked. Absolutely. Amazing!” Eskild exclaims going for a group hug. Isak rolls his eyes and Eva giggles. Sana shoots them a look from the side.

“They couldn’t take their eyes off of you!” Noora joins in as they walk towards the elevators. It’s is already full when they reach it, and Eva, Eskild, Sana and Noora get on it but there’s no more space for Isak. 

 

“You go on. I’ll just wait for the next one,” Isak says as the elevator doors close, taking them up.  There are 12 floors in the Training Center, and a basement which is for the tributes to train and the gamemakers to watch them. District tributes are assigned to stay on the floor of their district number, which means Isak and Eva are on the top floor. Isak watches the elevator go up, trying to estimate how much time it would actually take to go all the way up to the twelfth floor.

Just then a voice effuses from behind Isak “Nice outfit, Twelve.” 

Startled by the voice, Isak’s head spins around to find an almost naked someone leaning against the wall.  _ Almost. _

His eyes fall on skin. So much skin. Slowly Isak raises his head from the long muscular legs that seem to go on forever to the golden woven net that covers him from mid thigh and just barely under the belly button. Isak feels himself flush and is momentarily grateful for the huge amounts of makeup and glitter on his face. 

The boy is wearing a bracelet made with sea shells. There are decorations that are supposed to look like water droplets on his shoulder and upper body. District 4, fishing. Isak lifts his head up to meet ocean blue eyes. Isak recalls seeing his partner before the opening ceremony began, wearing a similar outfit and a sea shell bra. 

“I’d say the same for you, Four, but it doesn't look like there's much of an outfit,” Isak replies, keeping his voice as confident as possible. 

Even chuckles. "What can I say? We live to please the crowd now, don't we?" Even says with a smirk that slowly turns dark. "Well, as long as the alive part is pleasing. Then we gotta die to please."

 

Once again something flashes in Isak's mind, and he is no longer standing in the Capitol but crouching in a forest. Cold drops of rain mix with his tears and trail down his cheeks.

He shakes his head to clear it, and he is back in the Capitol with Even still towering near him. Isak realizes he should probably say something now, but Even suddenly leans closer to Isak, holding out a bowl. Isak takes a step back in surprise.

“Would you like a sugar cube?” Even asks and he leans even closer like he is about to literally clash with Isak if it's not for Isak moving backwards.

Just when Isak expects to hit his back on the elevator doors, he doesn't, and realizes that the elevator is finally here and Even was probably just trying to get into it.  _ Right,  _ Isak thinks and steps on the elevator with Even following after him. 

“You didn't answer my question?” 

“Huh?”

He holds out the bowl again. Isak looks at it this time to see it filled with sugar cubes.

 

“Where did you even get that?” Isak asks, watching him carefully.

 

“My dad owns a sugar cube factory which means I get to have unlimited sugar cubes wherever I go.”

 

Isak narrows his eyes. “I thought District 4 specialised in fishing.” 

 

Even laughs. “You're right. They're meant for the horses, but who cares, right?” He says and pops a sugar cube into his mouth, crunching it with his teeth.

 

“You stole them from the horses?” Isak asks disbelievingly.

 

Suddenly, there is a ping, and Isak jumps at the sound but then realizes it’s to inform them they have arrived on the fourth floor. 

Even grins at him with his mouth still containing sugar cubes. “That’s my floor.” 

Isak clears his throat “Yeah.” 

“District 12 really did steal the show tonight,” Even says, taking a step towards the door. “It was really hot though, literally.” He winks (or tries to), and with that he is out of the elevator and the doors close behind him, leaving Isak wondering what the hell just happened. Only when Isak is left alone in the elevator and met with quiet, he realizes how fast his heart is has been beating. It doesn’t slow down all the way up to the twelfth floor and throughout the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked it <3
> 
> Come talk to me on Tumblr and share your theories and stuff.


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